Liebster Award

Thank you to the wonderful and kind DandyLion author of Not so Ordinary Life for nominating A Ray of Sunshine for this award. I appreciate it so much!

The Liebster Award is a way of bloggers supporting other bloggers. The rules for receiving this award are to:

• Post the award on your blog.
• Thank the blogger who presented the award and link back to their blog.
• Nominate 5-11 bloggers whom you feel deserve this award and have fewer than or equal to 3,000 followers.
• Answer 11 questions posted by the nominator, and ask your nominees 11 questions.

Nominations:  
MsMidnightBlonde for Another Life to Live
MischiefTheKitten for Whispers in the Wind
NightlockFallen for Until My Color Fades Away
Daijah V for Cold Blooded
Lckygrl for Painswater Point


DandyLion's Questions:
1) Where do you get inspiration for your stories?
 From reading other Sims stories and just reading in general. Reading great stories makes me want to improve my writing and inspires me to do better.

2) Do you use the sims as a basis for your stories or do you use it to illustrate the story?

Both. None of my stories would exist without the Sims so it's a basis for my stories but at this point, the game is used more for illustration purposes.

3) Do you ever base your characters off of real people you know?

Yes, Amanda, Carson, and Star are loosely based off of real people.
 

4) Do you plot out your stories from start to finish? or are you a seat of the pants writer? Writing what comes to mind without any plot?

I plot and then plot some more. Lol! I have rough outlines for all of my stories but every once in a while a character will throw me a curve ball and it takes the story to a place that I never imagined. It's happened more than once with Jeff and Star's story.
 

5) What is your favorite character you have ever written?

I love Trev and he's my favorite as far as personality but my favorites to write for are honestly Jeff and Star. Can I pick all three? Lol.
 

6) Which sims game do you like best? 1,2,3 or 4?

In my opinion, nothing comes close to 3. I liked 1 and 2, have tried to like 4, but there's just something that sets 3 apart for me.
 

7) Do you have a favorite town you like to use for your stories?

Appaloosa is a favorite of mine. I like all the trees and nature. 
 

8) Which POV do you prefer to write in?

I personally like to write in first person POV, but I really admire people who write in third. I tried it and was horrible at it.
 

9) Do you write out character profiles? If you do, do you do it before or after you've started writing for that character?

I always write out character profiles, well, at least for all of the main characters. I do the profiles before I start to write their stories. I didn't used to but ever since I started doing character studies, I've found that it helps me know the characters more fully which helps when writing for them.
 

10) Where do you come up with the names you use for your characters?

Since Listening children all have British influenced names and all my other stories are side ones of that, I look at the young adult version of the sim and decide which British name looks like it could belong to them. For side characters, sometimes I use an online name generator.
 

11) Do you have a set schedule to write?

No, I usually write when I'm inspired to and have time. But I do tend to write better earlier in the day.

My Questions:

1. Do any writers inspire you? Blog writers or novel writers?
2. When you have writers block, do you plow through it and keep writing or do you take a step back and take a break?
3. Are there other types of stories you're interested in writing? Some other genre that you'd like to try writing for?
4. Do you do any character development before you start writing for a character or do you figure the character out as you write for them?
5. How much editing do you do for your story? Is it an ongoing process? Do you have many drafts for your chapters?
6. Where is the weirdest place you've ever gotten inspiration for a scene for your story? 
7. If you could live with any one of your characters who would you choose, where would you live, and why?
8. What was the thing that sparked your interest and pushed you to start writing your story?
9. If you write a legacy, which is your favorite generation and why? If you write a story that isn't a legacy, what is your favorite chapter and why?
10. What is your favorite line in your story? Why?
11. What is one thing that has surprised you about your story? Has it taken a different direction than you thought? Have readers reacted different than you imagined?